Shower pan having no visible drainage means

ABSTRACT

Shower pans are provided with a perimeter wall defining a perimeter of the shower pan and a plurality of generally triangular support wall sections. One wall of the support wall sections is opposed to the perimeter wall and defines therebetween a perimeter channel of the shower pan. Other pairs of walls of the support wall sections are opposed to one another and define drain channels which fluid-connect the perimeter channel to the drain port. The other walls of the support wall sections have upper edges which establish an apex of the shower pan near the central drain port and slope downwardly and outwardly from the apex to the perimeter channel. The drain channels are sloped downwardly and inwardly from the perimeter channel to the central drain port. In such a manner, water may be shed by gravity from the finished floor supported on the upper edges of the other pairs of walls downwardly and outwardly into the perimeter channel whereby it then flows downwardly and inwardly through the drain channels to the drain port.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The embodiments disclosed herein relate generally to the field of shower pans, that is, pan structures which serve to support flooring materials of a shower stall.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

Showers having no visible drainage means (i.e., so-called infinity showers) have become popular with consumers. In general, such infinity showers have a floor which slopes practically imperceptibly to the peripheral edges of the shower floor where it may then be redirected by suitable pan slope to a centrally located floor drain positioned under the shower flooring material. Visually therefore the floor drain is hidden physically by the shower floor material and thus water appears to in essence disappear at the junction between the peripheral edge of the shower floor and the upright walls of the shower facility.

One prior proposal for an infinity shower pan has been disclosed in US Patent Application Publication 2006/0236452 A1 (hereinafter “the US '452 publication”, the entire content of which is expressly incorporated hereinto by reference). The infinity shower pan disclosed in the US '452 publication in general discloses a shower pan having a draining base portion having a plurality of support structures upwardly extending therefrom for supporting a floor slab. The support structures thus define a floor support plane which slopes toward one of the edges of the floor slab. The shower pan is then sloped toward a central below the floor slab so that water run-off from the edge of the floor slab will be directed by gravity to the central floor drain.

While the shower pan of the US '452 publication may be satisfactory for its intended purpose, further improvements to infinity shower pans are still desired. For example, it would especially be desirable if an infinity shower pan was provided that could be especially well suited for use with finished tile flooring materials, instead of monolithic slabs. In this way, the floor could be sloped in a generally radial manner from a raised central region of the shower floor toward the peripheral edges thereof so as to facilitate better water run-off. It is therefore towards fulfilling such needs that the present invention is directed.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

According to certain embodiments of the present invention, shower pans are provided with a perimeter wall defining a perimeter of the shower pan and a plurality of generally triangular support wall sections. One wall of the support wall sections is opposed to the perimeter wall and defines therebetween a perimeter channel of the shower pan. Other pairs of walls of the support wall sections are opposed to one another and define drain channels which fluid-connect the perimeter channel to the drain port. The other walls of the support wall sections have upper edges which establish an apex of the shower pan near the central drain port and slope downwardly and outwardly from the apex to the perimeter channel. The drain channels are sloped downwardly and inwardly from the perimeter channel to the central drain port. In such a manner, water may be shed by gravity from the finished floor supported on the upper edges of the other pairs of walls downwardly and outwardly into the perimeter channel whereby it then flows downwardly and inwardly through the drain channels to the drain port

These and other aspects and advantages will become more apparent after careful consideration is given to the following detailed description of the preferred exemplary embodiments thereof.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE ACCOMPANYING DRAWINGS

Reference will hereinafter be made to the accompanying drawings, wherein like reference numerals throughout the various FIGURES denote like structural elements, and wherein;

FIG. 1 is a perspective view partly in section of a shower stall in which a shower pan according to an embodiment of this invention is installed;

FIG. 2 is a top plan view of the shower pan employed in the shower stall depicted in FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is a side elevational view of the shower pan depicted in FIG. 2;

FIG. 4 is partial cross-sectional elevational view of the shower stall as taken along line 4-4 in FIG. 1;

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

Accompanying FIG. 1 depicts a shower stall SS in which a shower pan 10 in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention is depicted. The shower pan 10 will be installed as part of a flooring system in the shower stall SS comprised of a cementious subfloor panel 12 and a finished floor layer 14 which in the embodiment depicted is a tile material with grouted joints. As is conventional, one of the shower stall walls W1 or W2 is provided with plumbing fixtures (not shown) to allow a curtain of water to be dispensed within the shower stall SS. The remaining walls of the shower stall SS may be closed by means of glass doors or the like (not shown) to allow ingress/egress and yet contain the water flow from the plumbing fixtures within the shower stall environment. A small gap 16 is defined between the perimetrical edge of the finished floor layer 14 and the shower stall walls. The gap 16 therefore allows for water to be shed by gravity from the finished floor layer 14 of the shower stall SS and be received by the shower pan 10.

As is perhaps shown best in FIGS. 2 and 3, the shower pan 10 includes a perimeter channel 10-1 which is adapted to receive water shed by the finished floor layer 14 through gap 16. A drain port 10-2 is provided centrally relative to the perimeter channel 10-1. By “centrally” is meant that the drain port 10-2 is positioned in a location within the space bounded by the perimeter channel 10-1. As such, the drain port 10-2 does not necessarily need to be at the geometric center of the shower pan 10. Most typical installations will however be such that the drain port 10-2 is positioned at the geometric center of the shower pan 10 as depicted.

A series of radially extending drain channels 10-3 extend from the perimeter channel 10-1 to the drain port 10-2. As such, the perimeter channel 10-1 and the drain port 10-2 will be fluid-connected to one another. Each of the drain channels 10-3 is sloped downwardly and inwardly from the perimeter channel 10-1 toward the drain channel 10-2 so as to allow water received by the former to drain by gravity into the latter.

The perimeter channel 10-1 is defined between the perimeter wall 10-4 and an opposed wall 10-5 a of generally triangular wall sections 10-5. The opposed walls 10-5 b and 10-5 c associated with generally triangular wall structures 10-5 therefore define the drain channels 10-3 therebetween. It will be observed particularly in FIG. 3 that the walls 10-5 b and 10-5 c each define an upper support edge which slopes downwardly and outwardly from the vicinity near the drain port 10-2 toward the perimeter channel 10-1. Thus, by virtue of this downward and outward slope defined by the walls 10-5 b, 10-5 c, the drain pan will exhibit an apex in the region of the drain port 10-2.

As shown in FIG. 4, when the shower pan 10 is installed in the shower stall SS, the finished floor layer 14 will be sloped downwardly and outwardly toward the perimeter channel 10-1 by virtue of the sloped walls 10-5 b and 10-5 c describe above. As such, water which falls to the finished floor layer 14 is shed by gravity into the perimeter channel 10-1. Thereafter, the water in the perimeter channel 10-1 will enter the drain channel 10-3 where it will be redirected toward the drain port 10-2 by virtue of the downward and inward slope thereof. The water will then be deposited into a drain pipe 18 connected to the drain port 10-2 where it will join the main drainage plumbing of the housing structure. A removable plug 20 may be provided over the drain port 10-2 so as to allow periodic cleaning if necessary. Because the drain port 20 is provided with the same finished flooring material as layer 14, it will be substantially visibly imperceptible to the user.

The shower pan 10 as depicted in the accompanying drawing FIG. 2 is generally shown as having a square geometry. However the geometry depicted is but one embodiment of this invention as a shower pan with virtually any geometry may embody the present invention. Thus, regular and irregular geometries such as rectangular, triangular, pentagonal, hexagonal and like geometries may be employed without departing from the present invention.

Similarly, the material from which the shower pan 10 is constructed is not particularly limited. Thus, metal and plastics materials may be employed in the fabrication of the shower pan. In a particularly preferred embodiment, the shower pan 10 is molded from a fiber-reinforced plastics material which provides sufficient rigidity to provide sufficient support for the flooring material. Alternatively, the components may be constructed on site from wood and then coated with a water-proof layer (e.g., polyurethane, epoxy or the like) to provide the necessary support structure for the flooring materials.

Thus, while the invention has been described in connection with what is presently considered to be the most practical and preferred embodiment, it is to be understood that the invention is not to be limited to the disclosed embodiment, but on the contrary, is intended to cover various modifications and equivalent arrangements included within the spirit and scope of the appended claims. 

1. A shower pan comprising: a perimeter channel; central drain port; and a plurality of paired support walls having upper support edges for supporting a finished flooring material; wherein the upper edges of the support walls establish an apex of the shower pan near the central drain port and slope downwardly and outwardly from the apex to the perimeter channel; and wherein the paired support walls define respective drain channels therebetween which are sloped downwardly and inwardly from the perimeter channel to the central drain port.
 2. The shower pan as in claim 1, further comprising a perimeter wall defining the perimeter channel.
 3. The shower pan as in claim 1, wherein the drain port is positioned in a geometric center of the shower pan.
 4. The shower pan as in claim 3, wherein the drain channels radiate from the drain port and extend to the perimeter channel.
 5. A shower pan comprising: a perimeter wall defining a perimeter of the shower pan; and a plurality of generally triangular support wall sections wherein one wall of the support wall sections is opposed to the perimeter wall and defines therebetween a perimeter channel of the shower pan; and wherein other pairs of walls of the support wall sections are opposed to one another and define drain channels which fluid-connect the perimeter channel to the drain port.
 6. The shower pan as in claim 5, wherein the other walls of the support wall sections have upper edges which establish an apex of the shower pan near the central drain port and slope downwardly and outwardly from the apex to the perimeter channel.
 7. The shower pan as in claim 6, wherein the drain channels are sloped downwardly and inwardly from the perimeter channel to the central drain port.
 8. The shower pan as in claim 5, wherein the drain channels are sloped downwardly and inwardly from the perimeter channel to the central drain port.
 9. A shower stall which comprises a shower pan as in claim 1 or
 5. 10. A shower stall as in claim 9, further comprising a finished floor system installed on the upper edges of the support walls.
 11. A shower stall as in claim 10, wherein the finished floor system comprises a removable plug aligned with the drain port.
 12. A shower stall as in claim 10, wherein the finished floor system comprises a subfloor panel attached rigidly to the support edges and a finished floor layer installed on the subfloor panel.
 13. A method of constructing a shower stall comprising: installing a shower pan as in claim 1 or 5 in a floor region of a shower stall; and thereafter installing a flooring system onto the support edges of the shower pan. 